My Father's Son
by At X Halt Salute
Summary: "...I hope you find out something good about your dad because right now I can't think of anything good about mine." - Tom Harris. Alex could only hope.
1. Worlds Collide

Disclaimer: Anthony Horowitz owns Alex Rider and all other recognizable characters.

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 **"** ** _ **In Everlasting Memory of the anguish of our ancestors. May those who died rest in peace. May those who return find their roots. May humanity never again perpetrate such injustices against humanity. We, the living, vow to uphold this."**_**

 _ **-Ghanaian Memorial Elmina "Cape Coast" Castle, Ghana**_

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 **Worlds Collide**

 **Prologue:**

It was just after twelve noon when a heavily tinted black car pulled out of the parking garage adjacent to the building known to the world as Royal & General Bank and onto Liverpool Street. While the car was meant to be inconspicuous it caught the attention of many tourists who hurriedly reached for their phones and cameras to take a picture, while trying in vain to see what British Dignitary was being escorted about. When their fruitless efforts failed, a few tourist looked at the nondescript building and immediately concluded that it was probably just the chairman of the bank going on his lunch break. With that conclusion being reached, they quickly lost interest and moved onto bigger and more exciting things.

But if they had been aware of went behind the soundproof walls and the bulletproof windows of the Royal & General Bank, they would not have looked at it with disinterest. For it wasn't just another bank standing in the midst of the bustling life of London.

Those who worked for the Bank's Intel knew that Royal & General Bank, was in fact, not a bank at all, but rather a lodging of Great Britain's Military Intelligence Sector Six branch, or MI6 for short.

Also unknown to the tourist and civilians that crowded the sidewalks of the street was the identity of the young occupant of the car.

An exhausted and injured Alex Rider was being escorted from MI6's headquarters after debriefing from his latest mission.

What had been promised to be an easy mission, far below Alex's own capabilities, had proven to be, once again, to be a long and hard assignment that found Alex spending several nights in some hospital in Budapest. Now Alex was heading towards his uncle's home in Chelsea with the hopes that he could spend a few days resting before going back to school and resuming the life MI6 had interrupted.

The car winded its way through the streets and many minutes later pulled up in front of a stately home in one of the affluent neighborhoods of Chelsea.

Stiffly the boy of fifteen stepped out of the car and made the small walk to the front door.

The apathetic young spy didn't even turn to look back when the car peeled itself from the curve and went on its way to ruin some other person's life.

No the only thing Alex was remotely interested in was seeing Jack, showering and going to bed. But all his plans changed once he opened the door and walked into the kitchen…

As the blonde haired boy limped closer to the kitchen he could hear Jack's laugh. Jack Starbright was his late uncle's American housekeeper and had lived with them for the past eight years. Alex had more or less grown up under her care and viewed her like his sister rather than his caretaker. As much as Alex wished the spunky American could be his legal guardian, R&G had assumed that role upon his Uncle's untimely murder two years ago.

Since then he had been blackmailed into working for the "Bank".

He smiled at the unassuming American, who despite being many years older than him, was still so naïve to the cruel ways of the world.

Quietly moving through the hallway and into the kitchen he saw from his vantage point that Jack wasn't alone. There were five others all dressed in military uniform, barring one who was simply dressed in a drab and forgettable business suit, and all were looking at the American with varying degrees of liking and humor.

Alex was furious. MI6 had not mentioned anything about installing a protection detail for him, but then again he wouldn't expect them too. As far as the Heads were concerned Alex didn't exist until they needed him and when they did, he wasn't important or valuable enough to include in the decision-making concerning his overall well being. The SAS invasion of his home was just the most recent example out of countless others.

He shifted slightly but that movement was enough to alert the spy of the group of his presences. Ben Daniels, formally known as Fox, looked up and locked eyes with the younger agent. Alex stiffened, he wasn't sure where he stood with the former SAS man. They had meant up in Australia that one time but he hadn't seen or heard from the man after his traitor-for-a-godfather had shot him. Truthfully, Alex had been too busy balancing his regular life with his unofficial one to think much about him.

Then a small, if not secretive smile formed on the other Agent's lips causing Alex to tense up further. The rest of K-unit was still oblivious to his arrival and, he couldn't help but wish that it could stay that way forever. He had no strong desire to become reacquainted with his former bullies, no matter if he had worked with two of them in the past.

Jack by this time had looked up from whatever she had been engaged in and was now openly gaping at her charge.

Breaking from her spell she let out a very un-Jack-like squeal and ran the length of the room to engulf him into a bone crushing hug. He winced.

"Hey, Jack." He said while wheezing slightly, his ribs were throbbing with vengeance again.

"Oh Alex, what _am_ I going to do with you! You said they just wanted to talk to you, that they weren't going to send you- You're hurt aren't you!"

Jack exclaimed when she finally pulled away and began looking over him and took in his pale face and wheezing form, her face was flushed with worry.

He smiled tightly and murmured quietly, "Not now Jack, I'll tell you everything later."

By now all the other men in the room were curious about the new arrival, with the exception of Fox. The Agent broke away from the group and made his way over to the small reunion.

"Alex," the man stated in a simple greeting.

"Ben," he responded just as neutral careful to keep his face void of any true emotions.

Jack looked back and forth the between the two obviously trying to figure out how the two were acquainted but was not having much luck.

"You know him?" She looked at him for an explanation.

"Yes, Blunt sent me to SAS for some basic training before my first mission and I met him there."

Jack seemed to think over this. A frown formed on her face before her eyes sharpened and she glared at the man.

"You weren't the one that always bullied him were you?"

Fox looked sheepish, "I didn't bully him, but I didn't do anything to make his life any better. I ignored him, most of us did. K-Unit isn't bad, though, we were just confused and insulted. Selection was not an easy time in any of our lives, and well we were stressed, and when Alex was placed into our unit we thought we had done something to anger our superiors. That and none of us were keen on the idea of losing a position with the SAS just because some rich kid," Fox winced at the wording, "usurped us. We thought it was a form of punishment, I understand now the true reason behind the placement and I have already apologized for my behavior when we were later we were paired up for an assignment. I can't go into details, but it was in that mission, I took a bullet that was aimed for him. That was a few months ago, we haven't been in contact since. When '6 offered me this position they told me that I knew the Agent and that I would be paired up with my former SAS unit. I initially hoped that it would be Alex, but Blunt _is_ rather tight-lipped when information so I had no other details to go by."

Jack seemed to soften at Ben's words but looked at him for the truth. He confirmed its merit before quickly giving the excuse that he was exhausted and would talk later. He wasn't in the mood to answer questions, he had answered enough through the means of debriefing.

Leaving the kitchen quickly so that he would never give the rest of the unit a chance to get a good look at him, he slowly made his way upstairs and collapsed onto his bed, not bothering to change his clothes or take off his shoes. Hoping sleep would come swiftly to him.

Back in the kitchen both Fox and Jack looked worried for the teen while the rest of the unit looked confused, except for Wolf who looked thoughtful.

No one said anything for a few minutes until Bear, Fox's replacement spoke the question that was on everybody's mind, "Who was that?".

Surprisingly it was Wolf who answered, "Cub. That was Cub wasn't it?" he looked at Fox for confirmation.

Fox just nodded wordlessly.

With impatience, Bear questioned his leader again, "Who the heck is Cub, and how do you know him?"

Snake and Eagle had yet to say anything but looked interested in Wolf's response. They were curious at how he would word the answer since there were no lost feelings of love between the two.

"Cub was-"  
" _Is_ " Fox interjected in a tone that dared his former team leader to contradict him.

"Okay, Cub " _is"_ technically our unofficial team member. He's young, too young but nonetheless became my responsibility when he was placed with us during Selection. Like Fox said, everything surrounding him is pretty much Classified, and I don't know much more about him other than he was hospitalized some time ago for his Appendix and that he works for Intelligence…."

He trailed off at the stony expression on redhead's face spoke volumes, so it was easy to infer that Cub _hadn't_ had an Appendicitis. Interesting.

"Appendix? Is that what they told you happened?" the American in front of him muttered furiously.

Snake, ever the medic, spoke up, "What do you mean, 'is that what they told you what happened'? Did they lie about his reason for being hospitalized?" True, Cub wasn't an official member but nonetheless, they had sworn that they would do everything in their power to protect him from this unnamed threat and thus, it fell to him to know if Cub had any pre-existing medical problems.

"Alex still has his Appendix. He was sh-"

"Jack!" came an exasperated shout from the teen they had all been talking about.

"Alex!" the startled woman exclaimed not hearing her charge approach.

"Jack, I thought you knew not to talk to strangers, I mean you and Ian were always telling me not too."  
Confusion clouded her face and it was several moments before she could find the right words.

"What are you talking about Alex? I thought you trusted them, and I assumed if you did I could."

A look of anger flashed over the teen before he glared at the other occupants in the room, Jack was at a loss at his behavior.

"I never said I trusted them, all I said was that I knew them. Now please don't go telling them everything about me. They didn't care enough to get to know me when we first met, and that makes us strangers. If they think that I owe them an explanation now then they are mistaking, I owe them nothing. If MI6 thought it was serious enough when I got injured, they would have told them the truth."

Although determination was prevalent on Alex's face, doubt seemed to conflict Jack.

"I sorry Alex, they just seemed concerned about you and they wanted to know," she said with a soft apology.

"It's fine, Jack. I am actually surprised Wolf cared enough to send me a Get Well card. When he is not acting like a complete and total arse, we were at best, civil towards each other. I don't think that is going to change anytime soon. And while I appreciate Fox taking that bullet for me that doesn't change that he works for Blunt, you know what happens every time I get close to someone." He finished with a pointed look at the woman. She paled slightly but nodded in resignation.

"Alright Alex, if you don't want me to tell them anything about you then I won't." With it resolved he threw himself at her and hugged her as hard as he dared without causing more harm to himself. "Thanks, Jack."

Turning to face K-unit for the first time with a sarcastic smirk on his face, he said, "For those who don't know me, I am Cub. Disrespect Jack and I'll have you unconscious. Disrespect me and I'll have you over my shoulder. Now that introductions are over I'm going to bed so keep it down will you."

Turning smartly on his heel Alex slouched out the room leaving Jack alone with K-Unit once more.

Eagle for the first time spoke, "Wellll, I see Cub has grown up."

Wolf spared his teammate a glance, "Shut up, Eagle."

But the truth had already been spoken. Cub had grown up, and as much as they hated to admit it, Cub was right. They hadn't exactly treated him right during his brief stint with them and now that it seemed they were going to be working with him for the unforeseeable future, they would have to try to cut their losses and make amends when and where they could. The only thing Wolf could think of was how quickly this whole assignment was going to go to hell, they were already on the fast track.

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 **A/N:** Okay, not my first fanfiction, but my first Alex Rider fanfiction so allow me to clear some things up. As said in the chapter Alex is fifteen. This story is set before _Scorpia Rising_ , but after _Crocodile Tears_. So disregard events that happened in _Scorpia Rising_ as from here on out it is set in an Alternate Universe. K-unit's Snake plays a major part in this fanfiction. Following chapters should be longer.

Reviews are welcome.

Dante'Sapphire


	2. A New Day's Begun

Disclaimer: Anthony Horowitz owns Alex Rider and all other recognizable characters.

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" _ **All the problems of the world- child labor, corruption- are symptoms of a spiritual disease: lack of compassion."**_

 _ **\- Tenzin Gyatso**_

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 **A New Day's Begun**

Alex woke with a jolt and laid there panting as he tried to clear his head of his dreams. Reliving the horrors of his missions through his dreams every night would take a toll on his body but he would have to worry about that later as it wasn't his nightmares that woke him (well they partially did) but more of an instinctual feeling that something wasn't right. He didn't know why he felt threatened but experience told him to trust his intuition. Stealthfully he got out of bed and crept across the room and opened his door just a fraction to see if he heard anything.

Nothing. He had been expecting that as it was approaching three in the morning and it had been a long time since Jack and K-unit had retired for the night. But that still didn't explain why something felt wrong and out of place. With speed and agility, he walked down the hall vigilantly on the listen out for anything suspicious or strange. Moving closer to the end of the hallway and towards his uncle's office. It was a very faint light that caught Alex's attention. Softly illuminating the floor around the door, Alex could see a shadow of someone moving within the locked room. Even though Alex had only been in the room once before, after it had been gutted during his Uncle's funeral by MI6, he had not made another attempt to ponder over his uncle's other hidden lifestyle.

But now he was about to. Alex wasn't sure why he was so upset about someone snooping over what was left of his uncle's but he was and that fact alone was enough for Alex to render the burglar(s) unconscious.

Silently Alex moved over to the door and tested the handle. It was locked, so whoever must have either locked it from the inside or more likely, broken in from the outside using the window as the method of entry. Carefully protracting the lock pick that he had never gotten around to return to Smithers, (not that the man had ever asked for it back, although Alex was positive that Smithers knew he still had it) and picked the lock, a soft but satisfying click could be heard as the lock come undone and pushed open the door ready to defend himself if necessary. What greeted him was an empty room. Sure, there were plenty of signs that someone had been in there, the open window and the gentle flutter of the curtains, some furniture pushed aside but there was nothing to give away the presence of anyone being in the room now. It was on the desk that a plain nondescript manila folder laid, almost as if whoever had been in the room before him had left it in his haste to get away.

Cautiously, the teen walked over to the desk, eyes moving to the window every few seconds and reached for the folder.

Curiosity getting the better of him he ducked his head and opened the folder and spreading its content out to get a better look.

The first few pages consisted of legal documentation and things of that sort, Alex brushed it aside for later. The next page was that of a letter followed by more legal documents and two birth certificates.

One was clearly his, and the other for a boy by the name of Colin Finlay McClellan.

Alex was confused, he had never used the alias of Colin Finlay McClellan. Could it have been the identity he would have used in France with his parents had they survived and had he not had an ear infection?

It would certainly explain why they had the same birthdays.

He didn't have any siblings that much he knew. He had been the only son of John and Helen Rider, Ian had said so. Of course looking back at it now, Alex couldn't help but wonder if Ian would have kept that a secret as well. Everything surrounding the man had been a lie, so Alex had no real reason to believe the man would have been truthful about this particular point in matter.

Deciding that the two birth certificates weren't enough to deduce any real answer, but tucking the one that belonged to Colin away for later examination, he searched back through the stack of papers to find the letter. Maybe it would provide an explanation. Finding it he began to read, not knowing that the letter's content would provide more questions than answers.

 _Ian_

 _What I am about to tell you is going to change your opinion of me, and I accept that, but you have to promise me that you will not tell anyone what I enclose to you in this letter. Please promise me this, Ian, this must remain a secret. The Bank cannot know of my deed._

 _I only have one regret in leaving this life, and I owe you the truth. The child you are holding in your arms' name is Colin Finlay McClellan. My own son, Alexander John Rider was taken from us shortly after he was born. The Bank had big plans for him and I couldn't let them down like that. I had no choice but adopted little Colin to raise in Alex's place. I fear the consequences Colin will face if anyone ever learns of my... adoption of him. Don't blame him as he is innocent in this whole ordeal. Unfortunately many others would disagree with me, putting his life in grave danger._

 _Remember enemies are everywhere, and mine, in particular, never forgive and never forget. Don't ever forget that._

 _Train him well._

 _JR_

Alex stared at the paper his mind blank before looking back at his real Birth Certificate, the one marking the birth of McClellan, not Rider. To caught up in the moment and overwhelmed with emotion, he failed to hear the intruder sneak back through the window before it was too late. The final thought that ran through his head before he sank into obliviousness was "My whole life's been a lie".

The next time he woke up it was to Jack's calling. Letting a soft moan escape as he tried to make sense of where he was through the pounding of his head.

"Alex? Can you hear me! Oh God Alex, you're bleeding!" the frantic American's voice rising an octave, making his head give a sicking pulse.

God, how he hated being knocked out.

"M'fine Jack," He mumbled. Still unsure as to what happened. He remembered being knocked out but had no sense of the time that followed…. He remembered the unassuming folder and its content….

He forced himself to think of something else, anything else, and when that didn't work he forced himself to listen to the pounding of feet as they drew closer. He could almost feel the house vibrating under the force before the noise was suddenly ceased only for the silence to be broken a few seconds later by an urgent sounding Ben.

"What's going on here! I heard yelling." Fox exclaimed when he reached the room, obviously not seeing the source behind the yelling lying prone in front of him.

"F-ox keep it down!" He had just enough strength to ground out.

"Alex?" a cautious reply came from the older man before he walked behind the desk to where Alex was just now starting to sit up, relying heavily on Jack. His world was spinning.

"Hey, take it easy! You're bleeding, let me get Snake in here to check you out and then you can tell us what happened, okay? You can trust him, he's a good guy." Without wasting more time trying to convince Cub of Snake's merit, the man yelled down the hall to the medic, "Hey, Snake, do you think you could check on Cub? I think he was unconscious and he hit his head!"

He could almost feel the blood drain from his face at the noisy onslaught before throwing a particularly dark glare at Agent.

"Dammit Ben, can you keep it down! My head kills and yelling isn't helping."

A look of remorse past over his face but before he could apologize Snake walked in the room with a first aid kit.

"Cub." The medic greeted trying to decipher the mood of his patient but wasn't having much luck as the teen remained stubbornly resilient and refused to look at him. The Scotsman sighed, now of all times Cub had to be difficult, of course, he didn't know the kid well enough to know if this was normal behavior or reserved for times like these. But nevertheless, now was the time the kid chose to fight him. He took a deep calming breath before trying again, as forcing the teen to comply certainly would help either of them gain the trust of the other.

"Cub...Alex, can you look at me?" he requested gently. Contrary to his past actions, he didn't hate the kid.

The man waited until Alex raised his head and looked him squarely in the eyes before continuing. "I am going to have to check you over, alright? In order for me to do that, you are going to have to be able to walk as I'd prefer not to do it here, as neither of us is very comfortable. Do you think you can you get up or do you need Fox's help?"

"I'm fine," he growled, looking away as he tried to stand on his own to prove his point.

After two shaky failed attempts to stand, Fox took pity on him and wrapped a strong arm around him and hoisted him up onto his own feet while positioning his body to offer some bracing support while Jack rushed about wanting help in any way she could.

All the moment made Alex want to throw up and faint. Snake, at least, stayed out of the way and observed the struggle with a keen and well-trained eyes before motioning them to lead the way. Good thing too, as Alex didn't know if he could handle another person trying to help him right now. With his green eyes locked on the form of the bleeding teen, Snake just barely noticed a piece of paper lying unassumingly on the floor next to where Cub had been.

Now it wasn't in Snake's disposition to poke around in other people's business but he felt that he should probably return it to Cub.

Bending down to pick the paper up, he couldn't help but notice that it looked like a Birth Certificate. He would have taken the time to look closer had he not needed to check on Cub.

The bleeding had him concerned and he needed to make sure the teen didn't have a concussion.

Closing the door on the way out he carried the paper in one hand and the kit in the other. Making his way down the hall to the room situated right across from his he noticed with a start that it must have been Cub's.

Since he and his unit's arrival a few days prior, the door had always been closed. None of them, including Eagle, had felt that the time was appropriate to snoop around and thus had not explored the home in full detail as they might have otherwise done. Snake noticed that it was painted a pale blue with a couple of Chelsea Football posters. Cub liked football. Snake didn't know why he found that surprising, perhaps because he knew nothing about their unofficial team member. Or perhaps it was because the few times he had been around the teen, there had never been any indication that he actually was capable of liking anything. The usual stoic boy was and had been a mystery to them all.

Thinking nothing more about the paper as he laid it down on the desk, the army medic was already mentally going through various scenarios and which treatment methods might be the most beneficial depending on what type of wound Cub suffered from.

"What was that?" Fox stated barely concealing his curiosity.

"I don't know. Cub dropped it, figured he might want it back." Snake commented distractedly while trying to force Cub to keep his head still so that he could get a better look at the wound. Cub ignored the medic and moved both his gaze and his head across the room to where Snake had placed the paper and made movement to get up and grab it when Fox walked across the room to retrieve it.

By this point, Snake's patience was wearing thin and he was seriously debating the worth of to having Fox put the boy in a headlock. He really needed to find the source of the bleeding, for although head wounds were notorious for appearing worse than they actually were, he had no way of knowing just how deep the cut was.

"Stop moving Cub! I can't see how deep the wound is or if you have a concussion because you won't stay still." the Scotsman said firmly while gently probing the back of the blonde's head.

Alex hissed in pain but stopped struggling allowing K-unit's medic to do his job.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a look of confusion break out across Fox's face who had been staring intently at the document Snake had laid down.

Slowly Ben looked up from the paper and towards him, his expression now was clouded and unreadable.

"This is yours?" doubt and skepticism colored the man's words.

Thinking quickly Alex racked his brain for a believable story. He wasn't ready to tell Jack yet, much less Ben, and to an even lesser extent, Snake, a man he didn't even know.

"Yes, and I need that back. It was an alias for a mission" Alex stated, his voice colder than ice by the end. When he saw that he was unlikely to get it back, the teen glowered at the man who was now staring down at the paper once more as if he was trying to decipher a recently told joke but was missing the punch line.

Alex couldn't understand why Fox was acting like this. He had worked for both SAS and MI6 and he was willing to bet on his life that at some point during either of Fox's careers he had had an alias, or at the very least, been made aware that they existed.

Snake who had been diligently working over Alex up until this point, spoke up, reminded the teen gently to refrain from moving. Once Alex stilled, Snake resumed his examination and Fox continued his interrogation.

"Please don't lie to me, Alex. Not over something like this," whispered the other spy his voice was filled with something akin to….pain?

Now it was Alex's turn to become confused and frustrated. How had Ben known he was lying?

"I am not lying," the teen said on edge. It was obvious that Ben knew something he didn't and it did not sit well with the young spy.

That and the fact that, did Ben honestly think that just because they had previously worked together that Alex trusted him? While Ben had proven that he was capable of being compassionate, Alex had never gotten the chance to know the man outside of work and neither of them had communicated since that one mission. It wasn't like they were really even friends, more like acquaintances through work, nothing more and nothing less.

What startled Alex further was that Jack had let her curiosity get the better of her and pried the paper away from the Field Agent. She usually avoided anything remotely related to MI6 but she too felt as if something was amiss and wanted to figure out what.

She squinted at the paper although nothing was wrong with her eyesight, "You were Colin Finlay McClellan?"

"I _was_ , but not anymore." The reply was curt, stressed and final. It was the truth. He wasn't Colin Finlay McClellan. He had stopped being that boy when MI6 had kidnapped him and offered him to John and Helen Rider... or whatever the hell had happened that had landed him with the Rider's.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Snake's head jerked up at the name, the man's eyes filled with sorrow, guilt, confusion and above all anger. Alex had never seen him look like that before, from what he knew of the man his tendencies had always been placid, he was a medic after all, even if it was for the SAS.

Eventually, Snake remembered what he was supposed to be doing and continued to feel around to see if there was any other injury that might need to be addressed, he didn't even bother to remind Alex to stop moving. The man seemed lost in thought and was quite possibly unaware of the frequent, yet hidden looks of concern Fox threw his way.

Finally, after about five minutes of continuous probing, pulling and pain from the stitches he had apparently needed, numerous questions about trivial matters, a tired sigh escaped from the man as he pulled back and began examining his work, which Alex thought was pointless. It was not like the man could see much through the thick white bandage he had painstakingly applied after insisted upon its necessity.

Alex noticed that Fox, who had also been lost in thought, jumped slightly at the noise. Idly he thought about the dangers such a trait might pose in their shared profession, his current position was a "gentle" reminder of what happened when one let their minds drift from the moment.

"Will Alex be alright?" the housekeeper questioned. The worry evident in her voice once she noticed that the Scottish man's attention was no longer solely focused upon her ward but rather on his supplies.

"This, along with his other injuries will take time to heal but I don't think he has a concussion. Of course, I would like to look at it later just to make sure... but I am sure he will be fine." the man shrugged half-heartedly as if to prove his point that this most recent injury didn't warrant any real need for concern. The man, like Fox, seemed distracted while delivering his assessment.

About that time, Bear, who most likely having been sent by one of the others (most likely Wolf), to find the whereabouts of Fox and Snake approached the doorway to the room.

His piercing blue eyes landed on Cub briefly before drifting over to Snake who was carefully taking stock of his first aid kit as he was packing its content away.

Lazily the man leaned against the door frame and continued to observe the methodical movements of the unit's medic while fleetingly taking in the ever so pinched expression of his predecessor.

"There a problem?" the man said casually as he pushed himself off the frame and stood straight allowing his eyes to betray his interest.

"No." Cub sullenly responded as he stalked past the man after taking the paper from Jack's hand.

Slightly startled at the teen's hostile attitude the man threw a disbelieving look at the room's occupants.

"What's his problem then?"

When he garnered no response from the soldier or spy he shrugged off the former question and made leave when it became apparent he wasn't going to receive an answer.

Sometimes Bear detested K-unit for all their secrets. Now was one of those times. He hadn't gotten far when an enthusiastic greeting of "Cub" could be heard from downstairs before a surprised "Hey!" resounded through the house.

The slamming of a door followed momently.

The MI6 agent sighed before throwing one last worried look at his friend before also brushing by Bear and out of sight in the same direction as the wayward teen.

Bear remained frozen in his spot, surprised at the abrupt exits of the man and boy. He wasn't the only one.

"Where is he going?" Snake spoke in a strangled voice.

Bear, assuming he meant Fox, looked behind him in the direction he had thought Fox to go, before responding. "I think he went downstairs. I dunno, he-."

"No not Fox, Cub. Where did Co-Cub go?" normally mild-tempered almost snapped with impatience.

Taken aback, Bear shrugged without comment. He didn't know any more than anyone else, perhaps less when it came to the kid. Anyway, why was Snake asking him, the child's caretaker was in the room.

"I don't know and I don't really care. Why are you so interested in his whereabouts anyway? Ask Miss Jack, I am sure she knows where he went." Bear suggested before leaving Snake to his own devices not really caring for a response. It was unlikely he would receive an answer anyway.

With a knowing look on her face, Jack almost broke her promise to Alex and told the SAS man where he was. Almost. She knew he wouldn't be back anytime soon but felt that Alex deserved some time alone. He hadn't really gotten any peace since he got home.

She alone knew he would be safe, at least, she knew where he was going.

She'd call the Harris' later and check up on Alex. After taking him back and forth, to and from karate practice for years she knew, as much as she hated to admit, that he could take care of himself.

* * *

Fox could feel a headache coming on and that was before he phoned into the Bank to let them know that their top agent had left, presumably on foot, the protection of his house and needed to be retrieved as soon as possible.

He hadn't meant to lead Cub into thinking he _had_ to answer the questions, this wasn't a debriefing or an interrogation, but he had wanted answers. Originally he had wanted answers surrounding the events leading up to Alex being knocked unconscious but all that was momentarily pushed aside when he had read the name listed on the piece of paper.

He knew Cub had no way of knowing the significance behind that name, and had taken defense and had resorted to lying over admitting his befuddlement. Fox couldn't blame Alex for trying. He hadn't really expected to receive the truth from his former partner, they weren't really close.

Besides, Fox had a sneaking suspicion that Cub wasn't trying to be hard to get along with, but that he honestly didn't have any idea as to what was going on.

It was obvious to Fox that MI6 hadn't even bothered to inform the teen that there had been a bounty placed on his head by a Classified, but particularly vengeful, terrorist organization and that a group of armed men would serve as a security detail until the threat was either taken out or neutralized. Fox hadn't received any real valuable information due to the difference in rank between the two agents but he was willing to bet that even a birdbrain like Eagle could decipher the true opinion Blunt and Jones held for the boy they simply knew as Cub, Alex Rider and now, Colin McClellan.

* * *

 **A/N:** Yes, Alex is Colin (if you haven't gotten that by now). I am also sure you have also figured out who Alex's biological father is.

No, I don't plan on changing Cub's personality. He will still be the sarcastic, smirking and reluctant teenage spy. Perhaps he will be given a break, but maybe not.

A little more detail was given about everything in following chapters, starting with the next one.

Thanks to all of you who left a review.

Dante'Sapphire


	3. Lead With Your Heart

Disclaimer: Anthony Horowitz owns Alex Rider and all other recognizable characters.

* * *

 **"** ** _ **Sleep, Soldier, Sleep, in thy Rough Earthen Tomb,**_**

 _ **While Above Thee the Winter Winds Rave.**_

 _ **In Summer the Birds Will thy Requiem Sing,**_

 _ **And Willows Weep Over thy Grave.**_

 _ **No Coffin Enclosed his Mangled Remains,**_

 _ **No Shroud, Save his Uniform Old.**_

 _ **But his Name is Entwined in the Laurels of Fame,**_

 _ **And on Memory's Pages Enrolled."**_

 _ **-Civil War memorial, Harper House- Bentonville Chapter**_

 _ **United Daughters of the Confederacy**_

* * *

 **Lead With Your Heart**

Looking back at it Snake didn't know how the morning could go to hell so quickly when it had started out normally enough.

Kyle had gotten up before dawn and went on a quick early morning sprint as his custom, before taking a quick shower and fixing himself a hot steaming cup of coffee. From there the morning became anything but normal both in terms of an SAS morning and an off-duty morning.

Now the coffee sat forgotten and his whole world jarred at the discovery of his son who had subsequently decided flight over fight.

Naturally, Snake was the most insistent, possibly even more so than Fox, to find the teen, this new development caused a raise of eyebrows for the rest of the unit.

Citing the claim that the teen was in no shape running around (although Snake had know way of knowing if it was true) the unit seemed to accept his excuse with skepticism.

Around 0800 Snake began to feel a slight panic build up somewhere inside of him as Ben continued to speed down the busy roads in their fruitless attempts to find the teenager.

Snake tried to scour the metropolitan landscape for the blonde but knew it was like searching a haystack for a needle, nearly impossible and downright exhausting.

Sighing Kyle turned and looked and the car's driver. He, like Snake had a determined look settled on his face but not unlike Snake as well, there was a sense of bone-deep tiredness as if neither of them really had the energy to look for the runaway teen.

Of course, neither of this was true, both Ben and Kyle were young. Even with Snake in his mid-thirties, one could hardly call the man old as he was in excellent physical shape which was demanded of any SAS soldier. And they wanted to find the teen, though their reasons might have varied.

The two made their way through the streets of Chelsea at a fast pace. Kyle was sure Ben had broken at least two speeding laws and had broken countless other traffic rules but didn't comment on it. Heavens knows how many he would have broken by now, probably enough to gain the attention of a Bobbie. And unlike Fox who did have MI6 backing him, Snake knew he wouldn't be as fortunate.

Gazing out the window he saw Ben pulling up to a school. Casting a questioning looking Snake watched as Fox deftly parked the car with well-practiced ease before stepping out of the car.

Colin couldn't have gone to _school_. Most teenagers would ditch school the first chance they got...he would know after all. It brought a slight smile to the man's face as he recalled his wild rebellious teenage years with fondness, the military had fixed that, though. His smile faded at the thought remembering that Cub wasn't a normal teenager. He didn't know exactly what the teen did for MI6 and he honestly didn't think he wanted to know, but even a blind person could see how special the teen was. Of course, if Cub was really Colin, Snake was biased towards his son.

Getting out of the car he momently heard the soft click of the locks. Looking at his colleague's retreating figure Snake followed him into the building.

Confidently Ben approached the front desk where a woman a few years older than Snake was sitting typing something on her computer at Fox's beacon he approached unsure as to what the other man had in mind.

Fox had to clear his throat to get her to notice them, but when she did she gave a start.

"Oh! I am sorry. I didn't hear you walk up. Can I help you with something?"

"Yes, I was wondering if Alex Rider is in attendance today?"

The woman frowned before casting a glance at him. Her eyes widened slightly.

Perhaps it hadn't been the smartest idea to come in wearing an SAS issued shirt….

"Mrs...Bedfordshire, if you may?" Ben broke in, voice slightly more demanding and laced with impatience.

"What did he have this time?" the woman mumbled more to herself than to anyone shaking her head more out of sympathy rather than annoyance. She typed on her computer before frowning again. Looking at the two of them the secretary asked, "If you don't mind me asking what is your relation with Mr. Rider?"

Snake could feel his patience wearing thin, despite the fact that the woman was only doing her job she was taking too long.

Kyle knew he was being irrational but he really wanted to see his son again and to make sure that he hadn't brought more injury to himself. Fortunately Ben had already planned a cover up leaving Snake with nothing more to do than to wait impatiently a bit longer.

Although a blatant lie on Fox's part, he superbly managed to win the secretary over with ease and even was able to provide false evidence to back his point.

Snake couldn't help but wonder how many times a similar excuse had been used while _Alex_ had been doing the bidding of MI6. Too many, he decided, way too many times than even remotely convincible. The secretary's demeanor told him that much.

Narrowing his eyes in irritation, Snake realized that Fox had known where Alex was the whole time, or at least had had an idea as to where the trouble-causing teen had run off too. Shifting impatiently Snake watched as an impassive Fox turn on his heel and walking briskly over to where he stood.

Just as Mrs. Bedfordshire was getting up from her desk to show them to Mr. So-and-so room a shorter man with a long face man emerges from a back room his eyes down casted.

"Jane, would you see if Simmons ever finished his roster? I needed it on my desk yesterday afternoon!"

The man had yet to look up from whatever paper he was staring down at so intently.

"Of course, I was just heading that way."

Glancing up he noticed for the first time the two men accompanying his secretary.

"Good morning, I am Henry Bray, Headmaster here at Brookland. I hope everything is alright." He said eying Snake warily.

He really should have worn something less official and business-like, but it was too late now and it might work in their favor.

"Everything is fine, however, we do need to have a private word with Mr. Rider at the earliest convenience." Snake spoke for the first time, carefully taking in the man's reaction.

The Headmaster didn't disappoint. He grew pale and slightly breathy. "Mr. Rider? He hasn't done anything to get in trouble with your lot has he?"

"No, not yet," Fox said too impossibly soft for the headmaster to hear. Louder he commented, "As I was explaining to your secretary, I am Mr. Daniels, Mr. Rider's social worker and-"

Bray (who proclaimed himself to be a very busy man) was not overly interested in beating these things around the bush, particularly not when it came to Rider, decided to hurry things up a bit.

"Yes, yes, so what has Mr. Rider done now? I am a very busy man and do not have time for idle chit-chat. If he has done something to get in trouble with the military than I do apologize for his behavior. I have tried on many times to reach out and offer a helping hand to the boy but he pushes me away." The Headmaster was nearly panting at having taken the stairs at such a brisk pace in order to keep up with the two other men who were apparently in great shape.

Snake not able to keep quiet any longer spoke, his voice sharp with impatience and annoyance. This had been going on for far too long. "Mr. Bray," he spoke firmly, daring the headmaster to interrupt, "with all due respect to you and your job, allow me to be frank with you, Mr. Daniels and I do not care what you have or haven't done. We have personal matters that we need to take up with Mr. Rider that is of no concern to you. As my friend said to your secretary, as his guardian, I will be pulling Mr. Rider out of school for the time being, until I feel that Mr. Rider is capable of resuming his studies."

Bray was taken aback by the man's bluntness.

"We need legal proof of this transfer of guardianship before we can negotiate the duration of Mr. Rider's leave. We would be held liable if we let Mr. Rider go with you and you weren't his legal guardian. As you may know: Mr. Rider has missed too much school as it is I am afraid. Therefore I will not be able to be very generous with giving Mr. Rider the amount of time you may feel he needs."

Was this man incompetent? Alex being here was a liability! Fox broke in his voice controlled but firm and a little condescending as if he thought the educator in front of him was subpar.

"All documentation have already been faxed to you. I made sure of that yesterday. Now if we may? Like you mentioned earlier, we all have tight schedules and I would be grateful if we could move things along. As for Mr. Rider's leave, his guardian is a medic with the SAS. I doubt he will have a problem giving you an exact time frame of how long he thinks Mr. Rider will need."

Kyle wasn't sure why Fox had told the school's Headmaster that he was the kid's guardian or included the fact he was in the SAS (despite the fact that he was in uniform) but he doubted that Ben had just said it because he wanted to. If Snake knew anything about Ben it was that MI6 had changed him and everything he did had something to be gained or a reason behind it. So Snake stayed quiet, wondered what Fox was playing at this time.

Henry Bray ushered the two into one of the last rooms in the hallway before following in behind them.

Looking around for more reasons than to just get acclimated to their surroundings, Kyle saw the blonde mop of hair he knew to be Cub's. He didn't notice the Headmaster skirting past them to inform the teacher of what was going on.

Not knowing or caring if Fox had an ulterior motive Snake walked up within a few feet of the teen and gently if not, cautiously called out to him. Fox had admitted that the kid did have some violent tendencies when woken up abruptly. Snake hoped to keep Alex's and subsequently his cover firmly in place.

"Alex, come on. We need to get going." The teenaged spy lifted his head and looked at him possibly not comprehending what was going on. His expression was for several moments blank and staring before anger set in.

Snake frowned unhappily at the teen hoping to convey the message of his displeasure but the teen just glared mutinously back at him.

Kyle ignored the the glaring teen and tried to convince the teen he meant to harm. "Come on sleepyhead, let's get you home. I told you, you would be too tired to school today." Kyle said softly and in a joking tone, his face was serene with concern and relief.

From aside, Fox noticed that Snake was playing the role of a concerned guardian perfectly, parenthood would suit him well with his "mother hen" tendencies. If anyone could find fault in Fox's prior story, they would be having trouble now.

Snake noticed the boy sitting beside Alex was looking unsure between Alex and him but stayed quiet.

Eventually Snake managed to wrestle his son out of his seat and threw a casual hand on his shoulder that belied the silent warning he was giving Alex. To his credit, Alex allowed himself to be steered out of the room by a man in SAS fatigues and an MI6 spy ignoring the whispers that erupted before the teacher could put a stop to them and resume his lesson.

In the car and away from the prying eyes and ears of nosy teachers and students the demeanor of Snake changed.

Flipped like a light switch the paternal act left Snake and in its place was a furious SAS medic.

It was rare for the Scotsman to lose his temper but when he did it was usually when one of his teammates had done something foolish and had gotten themselves injured (Eagle) or were too stubborn to admit that they were hurt in the first place (Wolf). It never paid to make K-unit's Medic angry and it was with Fox's pity that Alex had to learn this lesson the hard way.

"...a bloody concussion Cub! Not to mention other injuries that could be serious- but I wouldn't know anything about- because instead of giving you a full medical like I had intended you go running off to school like nothing is wrong! Not only that but when was the last time you even remotely got any sleep! You looked dead on your feet and had I not had my hand on you, steadying you, you would have fallen down. I don't give a damn if you work for MI6, you are still a member of K-unit whether you want it or not; And as your medic, it is my responsibility to make sure you can at least live to another day..."

On and on Snake ranted as Fox traveled back to the Rider's place of residence and it was only when they reached the nice upscale house that Snake had finally relented in his tongue thrashing and quieted down.

Throwing open the passenger car door in disgust, the thirty-something-year-old man stormed around and grabbed Alex forcefully by the forearm before marching the protesting teen inside.

Even Eagle must have sensed Snake's dark mood for the man stayed quiet and out of his team mate's way. Wolf glanced up from his gun and grunted in greeting while Bear merely observed the pair with curiosity.

Jack seeing her ward rushed to berate Alex but barely had time to get a few sentences in as Snake pulled him up the stairs and into the upstairs toilet.

"Poor Cub." Eagle said without a bit of sympathy, "Whatever he did to piss off Snake I am sure Snake will give him hell for it." Now the sharpshooter was snickering at the teen's misfortune.

Fox, who had entered the room around this time frowned at Eagle's statement and commented drily, "Without a doubt Eagle, Snake _does_ take his job seriously. Yet, I distinctly recall you showing a bit of concern for Alex earlier whatever happened to that?"

Eagle didn't say anything right away, he didn't have to, Fox could read the apology in his face.

"Well, Cub's okay now right? I mean you found him and all, so there's no need to worry anymore. He's with us and they don't call us SAS for nothing." The man shrugged the ordeal off not understanding the real reason behind Snake's anger.

It was Wolf who spoke up this time much to the surprise of the room's occupants. His words were sharp, sarcastic, and allowed no room for argument. The way he was able to gain control of a situation, (or in this case, conversation) was one of the things that made him such a favorable leader, despite his disposition. "Not one word that you just spoke made any sense Eagle. The kid has obviously angered the wrong people and I highly doubt that the prospect of five fully trained SAS soldiers will deter them from staging an attack. You need to keep your head clear and your eyes open because SAS or not, some people in this world wouldn't hesitate to kill you."

Whether Wolf was going to add onto his lecture, they would never know for a muffled exclamation from upstairs caught the attention of all.

"Survived? That's bullshit, Colin!"

Fox immediately paled and left the room taking the stairs a couple at a time as he quickly made his way up to the second level.

The rest of the unit shared confused glances, Jack also looked clueless until Bear filled her in.

"Snake's the medic, I assume he wanted to make sure the kid was okay and all, he did look pretty beat up this morning." The man mused more to himself than anyone really.

"Oh," the redhead said before a look of understanding passed over her face before her eyes went wide "Oh!".

Whatever Bear said must have had some level of significance for her for she too left the room in a hurry.

Upstairs a different story was unfolding. With gentleness, Snake forced Alex into the small room with a word before running off to get his first aid kit. Returning momentarily the Scotsman once again found himself checking the head wound determining that it had remained unchanged from this morning ordered that Cub strip his clothes.

Reluctantly and all the while glaring at the man who was overstepping his boundaries Alex began undressing.

Fortunately, Snake's head was bent downward either preoccupied or giving him temporary privacy, so Alex took his time complying just to spite the man.

Eventually, the man looked up his eyes surveying for any visible injuries. What he saw greatly displeased him.

The child had scars that littered his body and…. that had better not be what he thought it was.

"Tell me that isn't..."

"It's not. You are seeing things."

"Good," Snake started speaking slowly and dangerously soft, eyes glittering with unspoken fury, "because my next question would be why the hell a fifteen-year-old would have a _bullet scar right above his heart!"_

"That's classified."

"No, it's not if it could hinder you medically then nothing is classified."

"If MI6 didn't tell you then what makes you think that I can? Ever heard of the OSA?"

"Cub, you were fucking sniped, I am pretty sure that you can tell me and it wouldn't breach the OSA."

The teen before him had a stony mask on his face. "Yes, but it doesn't effect me anymore. I survived and that's all you need to know."

"Survived? That's bullshit, Colin!"

Snake froze. He hadn't said the name in years and he hadn't meant to say it now but he was to frustrated at the situation, at the teen's refusal to corporate.

Alex also reacted.

"What did you just call me?" He said glaring back at Kyle his eyes held fury and confusion.

Snake stared back at the teen unsure if he should go ahead and tell him the truth or...no he would tell him the truth.

Softer and full of emotion Snake responded. "I called you Colin. Your name is Colin Finlay McClellan, isn't it? I saw it on the... Certificate-"

"Kyle, everything alright? Alex?" That would be Fox.

Kyle, as Ben had called Snake, stared at him for a long moment before responding. "Nothing, Fox I was just taken by surprise."

"So everything's alright? I don't need to break the door down and rescue you right?" the response came through the door.

Silence.

"Snake?"

"Right." the reply came from Snake as he moved across the small room to get a better look at the wound. He needed to gain Alex's trust not shatter any chances of it. The important thing was he, the medic, at least knew. If Cub didn't feel the necessity of telling the rest of the unit Snake wouldn't argue with him.

It didn't appear to be too recent but Snake was willing to bet that it had been a mess in its day.

Alex, for his part, didn't move, opting to remain rigid the whole time.

"Alex." he tried once more, "I called you Colin not only because that was the name given to you at the time of your birth. I once had a son by the same name, he was born February 13, incidentally the same day you, Alex were born. His name was, _is_ , Colin Finlay McClellan and I am Kyle McClellan."

The man fell silent eyes thoughtful but his expression was filled with pain, he heaved another sigh before for continuing.

"Colin was a quiet baby, never caused much fuss. Anna and I were both young as I was still attending University working to get my doctorate in medicine at the time of your birth. We were so happy to have you join our small family...I remember the light in Anna's eyes when you would smile or laugh she adored you. We had just moved to London from Edinburgh, Scotland so it was a busy time for us. We were juggling a newborn, jobs, school and the recent move. I had gone out to get some things at the shopping centre leaving you and Anna alone at the house; I never suspected that it would be the last time I would see the two of you." Snake shook his head in sorrow, recalling that dark day.

"When I returned there was emergency personnel everywhere and the house was marked as a crime scene. I kept hearing things about the possibility of it being a gang-related shooting, but none of that mattered to me. All I wanted to know was that you and Anna were okay. The police, they said that your mother didn't survive but they didn't know where you were at. They said there was no one else in the home. If it hadn't been for the baby stuff laying around, I don't think they would have believed me, we didn't have many pictures of you yet."

Alex stared the man down. Sure he had read the note from John to Ian but Kyle explaining it didn't make it any more truthful.

"So you don't have any proof that I am your son? Figures. How much are they paying you."

"What? What are you talking about? Nobody's paying me anything." Genuine confusion colored his words. He couldn't understand what his son was talking about.

"K-unit. I know they don't like me, and I don't like them but they are curious about me so, how much are they paying you to get close to me and figure me out."

"Wolf and Eagle might not say much to your face, but they don't hate you, not really. I never hated you just hate that the government uses a child to take care of adult business. We all hated it and took it out on you." Alex could decipher if Snake was being truthful or not.

"You never answered my question, what proof do you have that I am actually Colin Finlay McClellan the son of Kyle whatever-your-middle-name-is McClellan."

"I-I don't. I have a picture I always carried with me, one of you and another with you and Anna but that's all. Like I said you were kidnapped when you were just weeks old, we hadn't had much time…But if it really is this important to you to have proof, we could do a simple blood test to see."

"No." Alex's voice came out strong and determined but eventually it sounded as if he was trying to convince himself that. "I don't know what happened to your son, but I am not him. I am not Colin." Alex couldn't let Snake know about the letter, about Colin. He wasn't strong enough to face that yet. He just...could not accept his whole life to be a lie- despite it having lived one for thirteen years.

"I can't force you to do anything but, just know that the blood test won't lie to you. If you truly aren't Colin as you say, then I won't mention another word about it to you. We will go back to our lives, me with the SAS, and you being MI6's pawn." It was a low blow but he really wanted Alex to give him a chance. He desperately wanted to get to know the son he had believed to be dead, and he was sure that K-unit too would be more open with Cub.

He would have to take this one step at a time, win Alex over and eventually see if he couldn't provide asylum from MI6.

He peered intently at the stoic boy in front of him. Alex's face was expressionless but Snake could sense the inner turmoil raging deep within the teenager.

"So, what do you say? Do you want to go for it?" Snake asked the fateful questions but could help but keep a note of hopefulness from his voice.

Deep down he was preparing himself for disappointment. No one ever said this would be easy.

* * *

 **A/N:** And done! Another chapter up and posted.

With its solemn reverence, the Quote featured above is one of my favorites. In a time when the U.S. was on the brink of division, we somehow persevered and managed to rally together and overcome the turmoils and perils in the sake of brotherhood.

Next chapter should answer the question of, whether or not Alex and Snake come to terms of acceptance or will they continue their paths of resistance.

Dante'Sapphire


	4. My Father's Son

Disclaimer: Anthony Horowitz owns Alex Rider and all other recognizable characters.

* * *

 _ **And you, my father, there on the sad height,**_

 _ **Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.**_

 _ **Do not go gentle into that good night.**_

 _ **Rage, rage against the dying of the light.**_

 _ **-Dylan Thomas 1914-1953**_

* * *

 **My Father's Son**

What spark of insanity caused Alex to agree to go through with this he didn't know but he was regretting taking up Snake's offer.

The man had somehow managed to get the DNA test done without spreading the word around too much and now they were waiting, baiting their breath for the results to come back. Snake was probably hoping that he was his son, where as Alex was hoping for the exact opposite.

He was in denial, he didn't want to believe that Ian and, in a way, John had lied to him all these years, that he wasn't actually the nephew of Ian and the son of John.

But just like Snake, or Kyle as the man had insisted he call him in private, there was no proof that he was or wasn't the son of Jonathan Rider, with the exception of the letter that he no longer had access to, (not that Kyle knew about that).

He was more or less an orphan now, of course he had been one since the Rider's had been killed, but now he was in the literal sense of the word. Maybe Snake wanted him, if he proved to be his son but for the moment he was left without any known biological family.

Alex had taking up ignoring K-unit, but having been doing that already he didn't find it to be too difficult. He heard the sarcastic and mocking calls from Eagle and the glares from Wolf. He was equally attuned to the sympathetic glances from Fox and on occasion Bear, who didn't seem to hold too much bad blood against him. It was probably the hardest to ignore Snake who always seemed to make himself present when Alex was around.

He didn't say much and when he did it was always just in greeting, polite and friendly enough to pass as well-meaning concern. But it bothered Alex knowing the man was only doing it because he could potentially get a son out of it, and it didn't endear Snake to him.

Alex also noticed that Snake refused to let K-unit in on what he had discovered when doing the medical. Fox, showing the only real concern had asked on multiple occasions but was always greeted with the same distant response, "That's for Cub to tell you."

The answer didn't pacify Fox but for unexpressed reasons he didn't pressure Snake or Cub for answers and for the most part let Cub have his space and tried not to hover too much. It wasn't like he was _that_ close to Alex despite the brotherly feelings he was starting to feel for the younger boy.

Jack, on the other hand, acted as if everything was normal, and for her it was. Alex was back safe at home even if that meant he had to be under the protection of some war-hardened men. She was blissfully unaware that her ward had signed a contract with the devil, or at least agreed to go through with the paternity test that may prove that the boy she had come to love like a brother was not who she thought he was. To her, life was as it should be, no stress of having to worry when or even if Alex was going to make it back alive.

The following morning, the day of telling for both Alex and Kyle, Alex woke up to the smell of breakfast.

Alex made his way downstairs and into the the kitchen and although he wasn't trying overly hard to be stealthy, it had become a habit to not make a sound. He paused at the door looking in on the room's occupants as they went on doing their morning task without complaint or acknowledgement of each other.

Other than Eagle- for some unknown reason, Jack seemed to be the only one fully awake and called for Alex again, while tipping a pile of fluffy eggs onto a plate.

"Alex! Wake up, your eggs are getting cold and I am not going to cook anymore!"

"Morning, Jack." The teen responded innocently back to his housekeeper mere seconds after being called and was forced to duck to avoid the frying pan that was being thrown in his general direction. When it hit the wall behind him, he got out of his crouch and smirked at the blushing American.

"Geez Jack, what side of the bed did you wake up on?" a devious glint in his eyes showing that he was joking. Jack ignored the jibe, holding her hand over her heart as if she had just received the scaring of her life.

"Make some noise next time or something! I didn't even hear you walk in! I could have really hurt you." The American rushed over to check him over before picking the abused frying pan off the floor.

Rolling his eyes in a typical teenage fashion he responded, "Doubt it, Jack. I saw that frying pan coming at me and had plenty of time to dodge it, besides your aim was horrible, I am impressed you managed to hit the wall."

Jack cuffed him lightly on the head for the remark before moving back around and pushing the plate of food at Alex.

"Don't get use to it."

"Thanks, Jack," Alex said, and he meant it. Although the American generally abhorred cooking and tried to get it over with as soon as possible, Alex always enjoyed eating whatever it was she made.

Once he had eaten enough to satisfy Jack, although he didn't miss or comment on the frown that formed on Snake's face he excused himself to work on homework.

Homework: the dread of every schoolkid in England and quite possibly the world. Unless of course, you were Alex the spy, who liked homework only because it reflected a much simpler time in his short life.

After slaving away at it for many hours with infrequent breaks, when he heard a soft knock on the door, looking up he saw an uncomfortable looking Snake holding what looked suspiciously like an envelope. As much as Alex suddenly wished he could feign ignorance of the other man's presence, or more of the man's purpose, Snake spoke softly, knowing that the spy knew what he was there for.

"I thought you might want to open it. Fox is the only one that knows about the possibility but I didn't tell him that you agreed to take the DNA test. Everyone is out and your housekeeper is at the store picking up some things. I volunteered to stay behind on watch, and thought now would be a good time to look at the results while we were by ourselves." Uncertainty coloured his voice.

Alex didn't move immediately because, although he would deny such openly, he was actually scared.

Scared of what the results may say. Snake was right- as it was highly unlikely that someone would tamper with the results and it was absurd to think that his own DNA would lie- whatever the paper said was and would be the truth, and they would have to live by it.

Slowly he got up and walked over to where Snake stood, Alex could almost feel the anxiety radiating off the man. So Snake was just as uneasy as he was.

"Whatever this says, remember it doesn't change anything," he spoke the words harshly.

In an equally firm tone, Snake countered back, "What do you mean, Alex? If you are my son then it does change things."

"I will not have you disrupting my life and trying to control what I do just because you are proven to be my father."

The medic stared at the teen before shaking his head slowly.

"If you _are_ my son and I will not just stand by and allow you to wear yourself down," Kyle said firmly determined to prove his point but perhaps it fell to deaf ears.

"You are only interested in me because of this," Alex gestured at the innocent looking envelop between them. "Not because of _who_ I am. If I was Cub, the brat with rich parents, you wouldn't be taking any special interest in me. You didn't before, so why start now?"

Taking the envelope from the older man Alex held it slightly further away from him than what would be considered to be necessary, before quickly opening the sealed sleeve with his finger.

Gingerly he slid the documents out of its shell and unfolded the stiff paper.

He didn't waste time reading over the document explaining how to read and interpret the results but rather immediately shuffled through the pages to get to the telling paper. Snake, on the other hand, reached for the the discarded papers and read through them intently.

Alex didn't need to know anything beyond his current level of Biology to understand what the paper infront of him said. He stopped breathing.

Kyle was his father. There was a fifty-percent DNA match between the two of them, the other fifty-percent of his DNA came from his mother... Anna McClellan, not Helen Rider née Beckett.

Alex stared openly at the results not completely comprehending what he was reading.

He _knew_ what it all meant, but he didn't want to believe that Kyle, a man he had actually interacted with all of seventeen full days, was actually his father.

The man who mistook Alex's silence for confusion spoke, "Alex, if I could take a look...I could tell you what it says if you don't understand…"

It was apparent when the the man faltered that he was taken aback by the glare on the younger boy's face.

"I can read it well enough thanks." He snapped, but the words lacked their usual bite.

"Alex…" Snake took a deep breath, "Do you think I could see the paper? I want to see what it says…"

Wordlessly the Alex thrusted the document over at Snake who immediately grabbed it and scanned the results.

Like Alex, Kyle's breath caught before a fleeting look of joy crossed his face, but it was gone as quick as it had come leaving Alex unsure if he had actually seen it or not.

Clearing his throat Snake opened his mouth as if to say something but nothing came out.

Alex sighed a long-suffered sigh before whispering, "This doesn't change anything, regardless."

The tension between Snake and Cub that evening was almost tangible. So much so that even Wolf, or Luka , commented on it on. "So Kyle, what's going on between you and Double O' Nothing?" Although to the untrained ear, it sounded innocent enough as if Double O' Nothing was a pet name, but Alex could detect the sneer laced within the words.

Snake didn't even look at Alex as he responded with finality, "Nothing."

Eagle, who Alex thought tried too hard to copy Wolf's mannerisms at times, scowled at Snake as well.

Snorting, the man piped in, "Like hell it's "nothing". Good God, the amount of tension between the two of you is thick enough to cut with a knife. I am practically suffocating over here and you say it's nothing. I call Bullshit."

Fox glanced over to the fair-haired man and boy. If their body language was anything to go by, then there was something going on between the two of them. But what? Or rather, what had they found out?  
Wolf looked like he was going to say something but was cut off by two things, Snake getting up and stalking out of the room towards the stairs and the sound of a door open and a loud boyish voice announce, "Honey, I'm home!"

Taking off guard, the bulky SAS men took mental stock of everyone in the room, Jack was there as well as Alex and Ben... all of K-unit...with the exception of Snake. Who could this new comer be? MI6 had only briefed them (and barely at that) of their Agent and his Housekeeper, no one else had been mentioned. Alex didn't have a brother did he?

The spy however, was at complete ease and called out perhaps rather irritably, "You don't live here, you twat!" before heaving himself off the couch and walked slowly out of the room to greet his friend.

Puzzled looks were exchanged by the members of K-unit before the blonde returned, this time with a dark haired boy in tow.

The first thing Fox noticed about the new-comer besides recalling him from the day before was the troublemaker smile that was fixated on this lips.

He also noticed how the boy's eyes lit up with excitement upon seeing them.

"Whoa, Alex. You could've told me you had some work friends over! Are they spies as well? Hey, Jack! Wait, I remember you!-" The teen rambled on while pointing at Fox.

"I _did_ tell you Tom." The spy groaned interjecting the teen who was _still_ talking. "Yes they know what I do, sort of. No they aren't spies, well besides Fox but he doesn't count. And don't call them that! We aren't friends, we barely even know each other!" Had Snake been in the room he would have winced at the words even though they weren't specifically aimed at him.

"Whatever you say mate. So if they're not spies then what are they? By the way, can I stay over tonight, they're at it again."

"You don't need to ask Tom, I already told you that you could. Come on, I need to tell you something anyway." Alex grabbed Tom's wrist and began pulling him out of the room and away from K-unit.

"Wait! You never said how you knew them. Tha-Hey! Ow!" Tom said as he tried to twist out of Alex's grip, but to no avail.

"They are that unit I told you about when I was at SAS. And stop complaining I wasn't even pulling you that hard."

"Oh. So what are they doing here?"

"On my last mission I infiltrate and brought down another terrorist organization and they aren't happy about so they want to kill me. Blunt assigned them to protect me and so they have crashed here until the threat can be dealt with." Alex shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal causing Tom to stare at him.

When Tom was finally able to speak he "How are you not freaking out about this? I would be terrified if I were you."

"You get use to it I suppose." Again Alex said nonchalantly as he stepped into his room with Tom trailing close behind, but secretly Alex wondered if he would ever get use to it.

Tom threw himself on Alex's bed and ignoring the glare that came from Alex's direction as he disregarded the fact that he had soiled the bedding in his process.

"So when are you coming back to school? Everyone's been talking about the suit and soldier coming and taking you away. Marc even Mr. Bray said that one of them was your new guardian or something like that, but no one actually believed him, I don't think even _he_ believed it. And I saw Jack downstairs, so what's up?" His eyes held a thousand unspoken questions.

"I _told_ you already, Tom! K-unit is here because there is an active threat against me. And, no, I am not sure who it is this time- not that I don't have an idea, of course- but I sort of went to school before I got the clear from Snake and MI6 and so they came and retrieved me." Alex said expressing his annoyance with the SAS unit with an eyeroll.

Tom looked at Alex seriously. "Okay so, let me get this straight: You go off on a top-secret spy mission, come back only to be assigned bodyguards because someone wants to kill you, but instead of playing it safe, you go and piss off the SAS by running off to school."

Alex nodded not really sure where his friend was going with it.

A grin slowly morphed across the other teen's face as he thought about the sheer absurdity of it all, "You know, my respect grows for you all the time."

Alex rolled his eyes again and shoved Tom off his bed at the remark.

"Hey! What was _that_ for?"

* * *

Around that same time just across the hall, Snake unfolded the paper for what had to be the millionth time that afternoon. So much so that a permanent crease had been worn into the paper. He gazed down at the paper in thoughtfulness.

Engrossed in the document he failed to hear Fox walk into the room, not that the spy had made his approach obvious.

"Hey Snake-" The man nearly jumped out of his skin throwing a mild glare towards his former unit mate while hastily folding the paper and tucking it away for a later read.

"Didn't mean to startle you Snake. What was that you were reading?" Unconcealed curiosity came from the spy.

Snake scowled at him, almost snapping, "Nothing you would be interested in." Fox said nothing immediately but keenly noticed the defensive tone the medic took.

If Fox knew he was hiding something, he didn't have a chance to comment as around this time they heard a muffled thump from across the room a briefly shared look of concern passed through the features of both men, Snake started, worried that something was wrong, but Fox held out a restraining hand and shook his head but motioned towards the door as if to say "listen".

Sure enough muffled voices could be heard and minutes later two slightly winded teenaged boys were exiting the room. Both Alex and Tom appeared to have just finished laughing and the two older men instantly relaxed. It was just two of them, no one had broken into the house, leaving them to guess that they had just been rough around, if Tom was anything to go by who looked as if he had just lost a fight with pillow, as white pieces of fluff hung from his thin frame at random.

"...too old to have a pillow fight? So are you gonna introduce them to me, after all I am spending the night and come to think about it, I don't think mum or dad would be pleased to hear that I spent the night with strangers," Tom warbled like a carefree bird yet, however, something within his words caused Tom to roll his eyes.

"You know what, I don't think I will. You deserve to suffer. Figure out who's who yourself. I'll give you a hint though: Fox works for MI6." Snarked Alex back, probably just for the sake of being difficult, something K-unit was quickly becoming use to. Kyle wondered if his son was ever agreeable, and by the answers Fox had given him, he had come to the conclusion that it was merely his son's disposition.

A groan came from the other teenager, "I know that already! Why won't you tell me something I _don't_ know, Alex! Like who Fox actually is instead of just say 'Fox was an SAS-turned-MI6-spy'." Tom had resorted to begging while Alex laughed at his friend's antics.

"Do you ever listen to Mr. Brannan? Using 'MI6' and 'Spy' in the same sentence is redundant." Alex continued to tease his friend mercilessly.

Tom shot his friend his best glare, although none of the SAS members were moved by it, not when they had Wolf's to contend to.

"Don't you know Tommy, that spies rarely ever have anything important to say?" Cub countered skillfully dodging a punch from Tom.

Fox rolled his eyes just as Alex straightened up and sombered, all looks of prior amusement fell from his face.

"So the one that just rolled his eyes at you is Fox- and Snake, who claimed to be my " _guardian_ " yesterday. You already know what Fox does, and Snake's well, he's the medic of the unit and.. _._ the _mother hen_ of the group." Perhaps Tom missed the stressed words but Kyle and Ben sure didn't.

They nodded- well Kyle nodded once- Ben didn't even acknowledge Tom as he stared down Alex. Whatever silent communication was going on between the two spies did not go unnoticed by Snake who saw Alex's hand clench into a fist before relaxing and a look of determination fleetingly pass through his eyes before giving a slightest of nods, confirming whatever they were "discussing".

"...Oh well, it's not nice to finally meet you. Alex has said a lot of nasty things about you." Tom stated while grinning smugly obviously thinking that he was doing his friend a favor.

Snake frowned deeply unhappy about hearing that, and whatever Fox and Alex were having a staring contest over suddenly came to an abrupt halt as Alex tried to reign in his friend.

Alex sighed deeply and said, "Tom, stop. They aren't that bad. At least they have apologized, not that I have forgiven them of course, but seriously, most of them have been pretty accepting about MI6's fiasco." and in a much more teasing tone the prior, beaconed Tom over. "Come on, my _au pair_ is going to call us an a minute and if she was in the same mood as she was this morning…." the spy grinned at the memory as he stole out of the room. Leaving Tom by himself with the two men who belonged with the Special Ops. Easily intimidated by them Tom quickly followed Alex's lead and left the room.

Once Ben was sure that the two teenagers were well out of earshot he rounded on the man he used to call his colleague.

"So." Ben challenged Snake knowing the truth and decided not to ignore it any longer in the pretense that it didn't exist.

"So, what?" Snake feigned ignorance, even though he knew what was to come.

"You never answered Luka's earlier question, when did you confirm that you were the ' _mother hen'_."

Kyle blinked in surprise.

"...Mother...H...What? What are _you_ talking about?" He managed.

"The same thing you're talking about, Kyle: Alex, or Colin, if you prefer. Am I to just overlook the fact that he is your long lost son? Shouldn't I be congratulating you and wishing you and your new son well?"

"You make it sound as if he is a newborn and I am a new father." Snake grumbled barely loud enough for his colleague to hear.

"Well aren't you?" Fox countered with a raised eyebrow.

"Hardly," Snake snorted. "I have been a father for the last fifteen years," the man finished almost bitterly.

"What makes you think that Alex doesn't see you as his father?" Fox who adept at reading through the lines, said sagely.  
"What makes you think that Alex is my son?"

"That should be obvious."

"How is _what_ obvious?"

"Alex is your son. I just ah, _coerced_ him into telling me what was going on and he admitted that you were his father."

"You blackmailed him into admitting that I am his father?" Snake deadpanned.

"Well I wouldn't go _that_ far, but something was obviously bothering him and he trust me the most out of you all so I decided to see what was going on. Besides, Alex needs someone he can turn to and trust and at the same time protect him. He trusts Jack and Tom but they can't protect him."  
"Who are we protecting now? Hey, guys." Eagle came strolling in as if it was his room he was entering not noticing the dark looks.

"What do you want, Eagle?" Fox said annoyed. Trust a member of K-unit to interrupt at the most crucial of moments. Ben had yet to figure out how his dysfunctional unit managed to do it, but it was like clockwork, it happened every time without fail.

"Well, Luka wondered why you two were hiding up here when the rest of us are downstairs."

Snake sighed and said, albeit testedly, "It really isn't any of your's or Wolf's business what Fox and I are discussing."

Matt didn't seem to be taken aback by Kyle's words, instead, he shrugged it off, and remarked that the housekeeper had just finished making supper.

Matt being the particularly unobservant person he was when off duty, was oblivious to the look his former teammate shot his comrade promising that the interrupted conversation would resume at a later time.

The three well-muscled men walked out the room, with Snake being the last to leave turning off the lights and carefully shutting the door behind him.

Once again the meal was filled with silence on Snake's part as he tried to ignore the incessant chatter of one Tom Harris, and it seemed like everyone at the table was attempting similar feats.

Wolf looked murderous (no surprise there) as he viciously stabbed into his food. Eagle was too busy helping himself to "Jack's wonderful food," while Fox looked bored out of his mind- though Snake couldn't tell if it was put on or not. Bear was ignoring everybody and everything as he stared down his food poking at it, as if he thought it might contain poison. Jack Starbright was too busy trying to make sure everyone had everything to pay much attention to the teenager's antics and Alex had long since dropped his act of pretending to be interested however, the young spy finally snapped.

"...Let me guess, Jerry BASE Jumped off the building. If you recall, Tom, I _was_ there with you."

"Oh, I know but I thought Jack might be interested to hear about our-"

"Tom, I would appreciate if we talked about something less dangerous and Alex," Jack interrupted while casting a glare at her charge, "If I hear of you going BASE Jumping you will be stuck washing the dishes until you are twenty. You hear me? Twenty!"

Alex rolled his eyes at Jack's attempt to parent him while trying to ignore the snickers from various members of K-unit. "What is wrong with BASE Jumping Jack?" Alex asked innocently, not risking to mention that he had partaken in the sport.

Jack stared blankly at Alex as if she hadn't been able to comprehend what the boy had just said.

"What's wrong with BASE Jumping? What's wrong with Base Jumping he says. Well, I'll tell you what's wrong BASE Jumping!" Jack's voice becoming slightly more pitched as she continued to rage and lecture over the supposed dangers of BASE Jumping. K-unit just stared on, albeit speculatively at the two teens.

"...And that is why- if I ever catch you attempting to BASE Jump anything- you will be stuck cleaning the kitchen to my liking every night." Jack finished her threat. Unfortunately, the desired effect was lost as Alex did not seem to be overly impressed since he had been on the receiving end of a lot more...deadly threats.

"Sure Jack, if it is that important to you that I don't BASE Jump then I won't. All I was going to say was that Ian was planning on taking me back to Spain to teach me one day."

"I could never understand why a _Banker_ would have such a keen interest in extreme sports. Now that I know his reasons, I must admit that I wish I had become the housekeeper to an actual Banker. It sure would have saved me a good deal of worry."

"Ian taught me a lot, Jack. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him."

"You wouldn't be caught up with MI6 if it wasn't for him!" Jack argued back her American accent growing more and more pronounced.

"Jack," Alex said uncharacteristically subdued, "Ian thought he was doing the right thing. He-he was doing what John would have wanted him to do." Though the words were as bitter as cud to Alex, a small part of him still couldn't accept the betrayal of the man he had known to be his uncle his whole life.

Jack huffed at her ward's attempts to plicate her, she did not, however, comment on Alex calling his father by his first name.

Grumbled under her breath just loud enough for Snake and Ben to over hear she came to a resolve: "Well, Ian wasn't right about everything."

Secretly, Snake couldn't have agree more.

* * *

 **A/N:** Alex is starting to come around, and some not-so-subtle hints were dropped throughout the chapter to prove it.

This chapter was longer than originally planned but I wanted to incorporate Tom who had become such a vital source of support for Alex in the original series.

I hope you are liking the direction the story is taken. More Snake/Cub interaction in the next chapter.


End file.
